Putin's Puritan Piety: The Ideological War against the West

Russia is one of the few countries in the Western world in which religion is becoming increasingly important and not less.

To establish his authority on the Russian society, President Vladimir Putin has shaped a doctrine mobilizing the entire Russian society against a perceived Western "decadence". He has declared that Russian traditional family values are a bulwark against the West's "so-called tolerance -- genderless and infertile."

The first Cold War was a clash between Western democracy and the Soviet dictatorship of the proletariat. The new Cold War is a one between Western liberalism and Russian conservatism.

During the Cold War, American conservatives used to label the Soviet Union "the godless nation" on the verge of collapse because it had purged religion from the Russian society. Two decades later, the Kremlin is occupied by a former officer of the KGB, secretly baptized, who launches the same accusation of atheism at the United States and the West.

"Putin's Russia is fast becoming a very puritan place. Ever since returning to the presidency in 2012, Putin has pursued an increasingly religious-conservative ideology both at home and abroad, defining Russia as a moral fortress against sexual licence and decadence, porn and gay rights".

Recently, Russian officials censored porn websites. When the largest pornography site on the internet, PornHub, offered the Russia's official communications and media watchdog a premium account in exchange for lifting the ban, Russian officials replied: "Sorry, we are not in the market and the demography is not a commodity."

Russian President Vladimir Putin's ideological war against the West is getting cocky and self-confident. In a televised speech from a Kremlin hall, Putin declared that Russian traditional family values are a bulwark against the West's "so-called tolerance -- genderless and infertile."

"Many Euro-Atlantic countries have abandoned their roots, including Christian values," said Putin. The patriarch of the Orthodox Church, Kirill, echoed Putin by charging the West of being engaged in a "spiritual disarmament" of the Russian people, and by criticizing the European laws that prevent wearing religious symbols in public. "We have experienced an era of atheism and we know what it means to live without God", Kirill said.

Russian President Vladimir Putin meets with Patriarch Kirill of the Russian Orthodox Church, May 24, 2015. (Image source: The Kremlin)

The first ten years of Putin's dominance were devoid of any religious and cultural reference. Putin and his circle never mentioned any "values", and did not try to teach any moral lessons to the West. The second Putin decade has been marked by a "conservative revolution" based on the revival of an isolated Russian Orthodox culture, separated for centuries from European civilization. "Putin wants to make Russia into the traditional values capital of the world," said Masha Gessen, author of a Putin biography, entitled The Man Without a Face: The Unlikely Rise of Vladimir Putin. In the Russian media, Putin is now called "the savior of the decadent West."

Putin is now focused on a church in the heart of Paris. The Sainte-Trinité Cathedral, often referred to as "Moscow on the Seine," is under construction near the Eiffel Tower, in the Quai Branly, and will be the largest Orthodox cathedral in France. "This church is an outpost of the other Europe, conservative and anti-modern, in the heart of the country of libertinism and secularism", said Michel Eltchaninoff, a French scholar and author of the book, Dans la tête de Vladimir Poutine ("Inside the Head of Vladimir Putin"), on the thoughts of the Russian president.

Are France, the United States and Ireland open to gay marriage? Putin's Russia bans "gay propaganda". Does Western Europe allow quick divorce? Putin's Russia taxes divorce. Does the West legalize abortion on demand? Putin's Russia is trying to restrict it. Russia's leading clerics have just urged Putin to ban abortion. A new Russian law also targets "foreign religions."

"Western values, from liberalism to the recognition of the rights of sexual minorities, from Protestantism to comfortable prisons for murderers, arouse in us suspicion, wonder and alienation", said Yevgeny Bazhanov, one of Putin's "intellectuals". Putin has apparently even managed to win the support of the most renowned Russian musicians, such as the conductor Valery Gergiev, superintendent at the St. Petersburg Marjinskij theater.

Even in foreign policy, Putin often justifies its decisions with references to Christianity. The New York Times explained that, in addition to strategic and economic interests, a major reason to explain Russian support for Assad's regime in Syria is the uncompromising position of the Orthodox Church. The Russian Patriarch Kirill evoked, in fact, the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917, with its endless "carcasses of defiled churches."

Before that, there was the historical role of Russia in defense of Armenian Christians against Turkish pro-Western Muslims, and Christian Serbs against Bosnian Muslims supported by the U.S. To try to justify the invasion of the Crimea, Putin said that is "our Temple Mount," a reference to Judaism's holiest site in Jerusalem.

Vladimir Putin has presided for years over the great revival of Orthodox Christianity. On the eve of the Bolshevik Revolution, the Russian church had 50,000 parishes and 60 schools. By 1941, Stalin had eliminated the church as a public institution. Every monastery and seminary had been closed. With the fall of communism in 1991, the church began to rebuild its devastated institutional life. Putin's Russia is returning to the concept of Byzantine symphonia -- an approach in which church and state work together.

The church apparently aspires to achieve the "re-Christianization of the Russian nation." Although as much as 70% of Russians call themselves Orthodox and are baptized, only 4% take part in the liturgy. But Russia is also one of the few countries in the Western world in which religion is becoming increasingly important and not less.

To establish his authority over the Russian society, Putin has shaped a doctrine mobilizing the entire Russian society against a perceived Western "decadence." The Kremlin has closely followed the opposition to gay marriage in France and tensions over migrants in the European Union. Putin then launched a conservative offensive aimed at both Russians and Europeans. As the Wall Street Journal wrote, "Putin Depicts Russia as a Bulwark Against European Decadence."

Against a perceived Western amnesia about its own Christian past, moral relativism and political correctness, Putin affirmed the Christian roots of Russia, traditional family values, patriotism and obedience to hierarchy.

"According to him, in essence, Europe has entered a phase of decadence, while Russia is in an ascending phase of its history", Michel Eltchaninoff says of Putin.

"He relies on the pseudo-scientific model of Konstantin Leontiev, one of whose most famous concepts Vladimir Putin is fond of quoting: that of 'flourishing complexity'. According to the Russian philosopher, who took a fervently anti-European and anti-bourgeois position, any civilisation, after a period of original simplicity, reaches its apex in an era of flourishing complexity, before declining into a period of simplification and confusion. For Leontiev, ever since the Renaissance, Europe has ceased to give birth to saints and geniuses, and only engenders engineers, parliamentarians and ethics professors. It makes everything uniform, through its mode of development and its conformism. But it is also confused. Its inhabitants are lost, and no longer know how to give meaning to their lives. They show themselves to be incapable of perceiving an inspiring superior principle."

The first Cold War was a clash between Western democracy and the Soviet dictatorship of the proletariat. Western freedom crushed the Soviet gulags. The new Cold War is a one between Western liberalism and Russian conservatism.

As happened during the first Cold War, when the Soviets depicted capitalism as a Western fault, avaricious and amoral, the burden is presumably again on the West to prove it has better way of life and that its society is not just a "decadent" stereotype. Meanwhile, against the West's visible lack of self-confidence and the deterioration of Europe's élite, Putin's geopolitical and ideological hegemony is getting stronger.

Giulio Meotti, Cultural Editor for Il Foglio, is an Italian journalist and author.

Comment on this item

Name:

Email Address:

Comments:

Email me if someone replies to my comment

Note: Gatestone Institute greatly appreciates your comments. The editors reserve the right, however, not to publish comments containing: incitement to violence, profanity, or any broad-brush slurring of any race, ethnic group or religion. Gatestone also reserves the right to edit comments for length, clarity and grammar. All thoughtful suggestions and analyses will be gratefully considered. Commenters' email addresses will not be displayed publicly. Gatestone regrets that, because of the increasingly great volume of traffic, we are not able to publish them all.

19 Reader Comments

David • Oct 17, 2016 at 10:45

In all honesty, when it comes to the shrillness of those who don't like what Nigel Farage said in the June 23rd British Referendum, or what Donald Trump is saying in the US Presidential election - they show what they don't want to hear.

It is a show down between what Nikolai Berdyaev pinned his identity on, and what Antonio Gramsci pinned his identity on.

Reply->

aykm • Oct 12, 2016 at 17:21

Are you kidding me? Russia is corrupt, especially in the religious sector. They're even more godless than they were under communism.

Reply->

Peter Terry • Oct 11, 2016 at 02:11

My country's government has been at odds with Russia's leadership since 1999, since Putin assumed the top leadership position in his country. Under Bill Clinton, George Bush and Barack Obama, rather than partner with Russia, we've been butting heads with its government. Putin may well be reacting to what Russians regard as the extreme implementation of a human rights agenda that is not counterbalanced by traditional values. But it is likely that he would not be so convinced of the unfriendliness of the US government...if our government, and its leaders, had been friendly towards him over the course of the past 17 years. We engaged in a Cold War with the USSR for decades...we know the vast resources expended upon that War. Do we really want to repeat that policy? Do we really want to continue to treat Russia as a rival and an opponent, rather than finding common ground? I think not. I hope that new leadership in my country, and in the UK and France and Germany and other European countries will seek that common ground with Russia. Overall, it is a policy that is much more likely to bear healthy fruit, than continuing to wage war against everybody who doesn't agree with everything we say and do.

Reply->

Henry Peter Terry • Oct 16, 2016 at 16:35

The way Russia presents itself to the world is pure hypocrisy and lie, as everything else Russia tells and promises. Just look at Russians in Europe, and dead Syrian children purposely killed and destroyed hospitals. This is a hypocritical and godless society and the union between state/KGB/religion is to keep brainwashing the already brainwashed population. Their religion is one of the pillars supporting the dictatorship. Their "family values" are represented by broken families, rampant alcoholism and violence. I can agree with the statement that the decadent Western society has degenerated and is coming to the point of extinction but totally disagree with the "spiritual" image of Russia depicted by the Russian propaganda.

Reply->

Samer Ibrashim • Oct 10, 2016 at 05:36

Putin is doing the right thing because he is protecting his country against the evil west, who has been trying throughout history to dismantle Russia and destroy it. The west tries to turn a great country like Russia into a second Iraq or Syria or Libya. The west should draw lessons from history: Russia is not, and will never become, Iraq or Syria. Russia is simply a great nation.

Reply->

Pal • Oct 10, 2016 at 03:01

With its extended interaction with the Golden Horde and Ottoman Empires, Russia adopted much of their mentality. No wonder many Russian Orthodox leaders allied with the Horde and converted to Islam when fighting the West.One of the typical patterns from that time was one of Alexander Nevsky of 13th century. Grand prince, he fought successfully European Christian nights of Germany, Sweden et al powerfully defeating them including by support from the Horde. Then he gratefully converted to Islam.http://www.islam-today.net/fpshow.asp?idd=168&kind=fpIvan the Terrible (1547-1584), the renown "Orthodox" tzar that expanded Russian territory to the East – by 4,050,000 km2 (1,560,000 sq mi) – had on his helmet, in Arabic hieroglyphs, inscribed the islam's shahada: "Allah is only God, Mohamet is his messenger":http://www.chronologia.org/en/seven/4N13-EN-1.pdfThere have been similar inscriptions on the then Russian army soldiers' arms, too. In fact, Ivan the Terrible dynasty, the Ruriks, which ended in 1598, are considered by some experts as an extension of the Golden Horde.

In its fights 'against' Islam and against the West, Russia has always prioritized the fight against the West as a fight that it Must win or never surrender / succumb to.

So Putin embraces Christianity, family values, life versus abortion, traditional marriage, etc. And is singled out and called a racist, fascist,corrupt, Godless hypocrite. Sounds like life in the United States.

He is correct. Europe and the United States are decedent, along with their leaders. Why are we as Americans so bent on working against Russia? If we weren't still meddling in Syria, the conflict could be over or close to an end. Russia is protecting it's I interest's and influence no different than we do.

Reply->

Pal • Oct 10, 2016 at 02:19

Russian "Church" and "Christianity" is a mere Kremlin manipulation.Russia is no Western country at all. Russia is a Western enemy.Today, it is a godless country again: Russia can not have its godly roots and bloodily occupy "brotherly orthodox" peoples like Ukraine, Georgia, Moldova, tearing off their territories.Putin and all other Soviet leaders before him, similarly to all Russian Church leaders, are generals of KGB, including the one you see on the picture.There is no puritanism in Russia. There are mechanisms for Kremlin to strengthen its power grip.

Reply->

Podargus • Oct 9, 2016 at 15:08

Just as Mussolini used the Roman Catholic Church in Italy to further his ambitions, so Putin is using the Russian Orthodox Church.Putin's only religion is power and Russia is now a fascist state.

Reply->

El Cid • Oct 9, 2016 at 14:53

The strategy probably began as a reaction to Islamic Jihad. Once you actually name the enemy, to counter it, I believe, you need to acknowledge the religious basis of the conflict and reflect on what values you actually believe in.

Notice that the former satellite nations, such as Poland and Hungary, are attracted to ideology similar to Putin while the EU attacks it.

In the end, Russia may succeed in bringing these nations back in the fold using this approach.

Those who lived under Communism have special appreciation for religious identity, perhaps. It is ironic that the leader of Europe, Merkel, is one of these survivors of communism and leading Europe in exactly the opposite direction.

Reply->

stevenl • Oct 9, 2016 at 14:12

Dear Giulio,So far and out of bitter experience, Putin is the only one who understands that Islamism and Islam are the Enemy Number ONE of humanity!The West is still engaged in its two thousand years old war against the Jews!

Reply->

Andrew Boughton stevenl • Oct 10, 2016 at 15:58

Hi Stevenl,

This is so true, but the West is still fighting its 100 year war against Russia, not a thousand year war against the Jews, with the exception of the political left, which sees the regressive Islamicists as solidly anti-capitalist while the Jews so long ago became pro-capitalist. Hence their alliance. These anti-Western Westerners (who as many point out are themselves the same self-indulgent middle class idiots who provided the spark to throw Syria into the pits of Hell) are the anti-Jewish ones and they took over our institutions from about 1980.

Andrew Boughton

Reply->

David Walker • Oct 9, 2016 at 12:54

If, a decade ago, anyone had informed that the world would change so much that I would trust a Russian oligarch to look after the best interests of Western civilisation more than I would trust the President of the United States and NATO to do so, I would have laughed them to scorn.

Not any more.

Reply->

James Bolton • Oct 9, 2016 at 11:35

In light of this religious/political dynamic in Russia; What is the current assessment of the Kremlin/Putin's view of Islamic proliferation?

It's very obvious that we are faced with several Geo-political threats today. The threats within our own nation form penetrations of insurgent activity may tend to over-shadow the exterior threats and the fact that many of them are connected.

Globalism in my humble opinion is at the center of all theses subject matters. Whether it's Islam, China/Russia, EU globalist or our own state failures from within, it all comes back to; who is going to call the shots at the end of the day.

As I was acquainted with Sen. Jesse Helms many years ago, I have followed thee developments. Incoherence seems to have arrested the American conscience and ability to think outside the box, so to speak.

Reply->

william carr • Oct 9, 2016 at 09:17

Interesting Hitler claimed to be the defender of 'Western civilisation' against the Bolshevic hordes and of course 'Jewry" as well

Reply->

David Truman • Oct 9, 2016 at 08:16

It is wonderful to see Putin's encouragement of the rebirth of Orthodoxy and traditional, conservative values in Russia. Russia is continuing to show "passionarity" (term invented by the historian Lev Gumilev), meaning confidence in itself, its culture and values, and active affirmation of them and desire to spread them. This is not to be confused with rebuilding the Soviet empire.Russia has decisively rejected the Cultural Marxism which has created so much cultural pessimism and decadence in the West. More strength to Putin's arm!

Reply->

Andrew Boughton • Oct 9, 2016 at 07:40

It is entirely valid for Putin to Russian assert family values over the loss of same in the West. Ironically the West has steadily become more Marxist as Russia has become more conservative. Mainstream Western feminism is Marxist-Leninist and our universities resemble something out of Mao's Cultural Revolution of the 1960s.

Of course, we also had the specter of China lecturing the US on fiscal responsibility in the wake of the GFC, another not entirely misplaced irony.

I think it is hypocritical to criticize Russia and Putin (though I personally do not like his authoritarian style) when some of what he says is the truth. For example, the fact that Europe is becoming infertile is not to be dismissed. Also at a time when Islam and his adherents have almost gobbled up France and Belgium and pretty soon some other European countries, French scholars, blind or imbecilic about what's going on in their countries are finding cause with what Putin says. Shouldn't they be more concerned that not a week passes that a Muslim commits a crime and intimidates a once proud nation?

The articles printed here do not necessarily reflect the views of the Editors or of Gatestone Institute.
Both reserve the right not to publish replies to articles should they so choose.
Gatestone Institute is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit organization, Federal Tax ID #454724565.